Commercial airlines are under continual pressure to streamline operations in order to make more efficient use of their aircraft. One way to streamline operations has been to increase the speed with which information is transmitted between aircraft and ground-based stations. The ground-based stations can include maintenance facilities, operational headquarters, and other organizations that use information (e.g., including statistical data associated with each flight) so as to plan maintenance procedures, improve aircraft routing, improve fuel efficiency, and improve other aspects of aircraft operation. Ground-based facilities can also transmit information to the aircraft, including data associated with upcoming or just-completed flights.
One approach for increasing the speed with which information is transmitted between an aircraft and ground-based systems is to place wireless transmitter/receivers at an airport and then link the transmitters/receivers to a hard-wired network (e.g., the Internet). An advantage of this “wi-fi” arrangement is that it allows aircraft to transmit and receive valuable data while taxiing at the airport and when parked at an aircraft gate. One feature of this arrangement is that the wireless transmitters/receivers are typically located out-of-doors and in close proximity to the aircraft, so as to have reliable, line-of-sight links to the aircraft, despite the movement of the aircraft, the presence of other aircraft, and the presence of intervening structures, including bulky, odd-shaped airport equipment. A drawback of this arrangement is that the transmitters/receivers may be exposed to hostile environmental conditions that may cause the devices to fail and/or require maintenance more often than more typical wi-fi devices that are located indoors. Furthermore, as a result of the close proximity of the transmitters/receivers to aircraft taxiways, runways and gate aprons, it can be difficult to gain access to the transmitters/receivers while still complying with airport security measures and while not interfering with aircraft operations.